In the production of offshore oil and gas, floating structures are used to support a platform for production and drilling operations. Floating structures use buoyant forces to keep the platform afloat. Cans (e.g. air cans) are common types of floating structures. Such cans are designed to support a certain weight associated with the platform structure, risers, and mooring lines, in addition to the production and support equipment located on the platform.
The weight of the platform to be supported varies depending on the depth of the water. At greater depths, longer risers and mooring lines, for example, are needed to reach between the sea floor and the platform, increasing the amount of weight to be supported in the water. The weight of the structure to be supported also increases with the weight of production and support equipment on the platform. Since the maximum weight bearing capacity of the overall platform is limited, moving a floating structure to deeper water depths or adding additional production or support equipment to the structure cannot be accomplished without increasing the buoyancy of the platform.
To increase the buoyancy of a platform, a new structure must be built or the existing structure can be towed back to shore and retrofitted to have increased buoyancy. The costs associated with a new structure and the costs associated with towing an existing structure back to shore for retrofit are significant. In addition, the lost production can be devastating to the economics of the well.
A need exists, therefore, for a solution to the limitations discussed above
The present embodiments are detailed below with reference to the listed Figures.